Moonlight: New Moon
by VampricFaeryGirl
Summary: Sequel to Moonlight: A Twilight Parody. A darker (and also more comical) look at a misfit who finds herself dragged into a world of vegetarian vampires and werewolves. This version of New Moon features more Jacob, more Carlisle, and less Edward (as he's on vacation).
1. Preface

_PREFACE_

I FELT LIKE I WAS TRAPPED IN ONE OF THOSE TERRIFYING NIGHTMARES, running and running and running but never getting closer. Which was, ridiculous, because I was getting closer, but my destination was so far it seemed like I was standing still, even when I had wriggled through so many people, trying to get to the steps. The unexpected rain was a godsend, and no one here knew it. At least no one human. Except me. It was because I was human that even though I had run through the narrow alley at top speed and pushed so many unaware people out of my way, I was far from being the heroine I was asked to be. A clock struck noon, a deep sound that made my heart drop. It was time. I'd almost had a real chance at being free. And how, here I was again, facing death. I was too late.


	2. Chapter 1: Party

_Chapter 1: Party_

I WAS NINETY-NINE POINT NINE PERCENT SURE I WAS DREAMING. My first clue was that even though I knew I'd never been here before, I recognized the candlelit stone room I was in. It was dim. The stones and the candles already suggested the place was old, but the six stone-carved thrones arranged on a curved pedestal at the far end of the room guaranteed this place was ancient. Oh, and the spider webs draping like curtains in every corner.

Five of the thrones seemed well used. The arms were worn away, smoothed down like rocks against the tide, eroded over years, maybe decades. Those five each had something decorating them, like a velvet cushion, or a flat pillow for footrests. The sixth throne had been restored at some point, replaced with marble. Instead of being empty and waiting, a woman of marble remained enthroned permanently. Her features were so life-like it was scary to stare into her blank eyes and not expect her to blink. But her smooth long braid that draped over her shoulder and down her side didn't moved when a cool gust came from behind me. Her skirt layers didn't shift. Her bare toes didn't wiggle once. Her noble posture didn't stir. If not for that breeze I might have watched her my whole dream—because for a second I thought I saw colour in the marble, maybe she'd had brown hair and dark eyes with rosy cheeks—but I turned around. A door behind me had opened.

It was a huge door. The room itself was huge too, large enough to host a crowd, maybe a school dance, if the dance had a medieval throne room theme. The door had large bolts that were rusted and the hinges creaked so terribly I'd had to cover my ears when the double doors parted. I hadn't seen who had entered. I heard a howl, from somewhere far away, outside the stone.

"Bella."

It was a voice I'd never heard before, but yet I knew him.

When I looked at the thrones, there were people there. I could see them but, because I was dreaming, they had no faces, no bodies, nothing that I could try to remember when I woke up. I only knew they weren't human.

"Bella."

This time, a familiar voice said my name. I opened my eyes.

Angie was staring at me, hovering above me. We both shrieked when we realized I was awake.

"Sorry!" Angie fell back and landed on the floor next to her bed, a step away from where my sleeping bag was laid out on the floor.

"I almost had a heart attack!" I sat up and unzipped the sleeping bag.

"You were mumbling and saying names I'd never heard and…I admit I started eavesdropping," Angie said bashfully. "I thought about waking you up. You didn't look like you were enjoying that dream."

It was the first week of June, and final exams were approaching at light-speed, which was why Angie and I had arranged weekly study sessions. Maybe it was unusual that Angie and I actually studied instead of using the excuse to watch movies or gossip, but Angie and I couldn't help but be good students. Sure we were boring but our grades were good. Jess had joined us a couple times, mostly because she was envious that Angie and I had suddenly become the kind of best friends that didn't automatically include her in our plans, but when she failed twice to turn our Study Saturdays into Girls' Night In, she decided to study on her own. Angie and I hadn't abandoned fun altogether. But Saturday night was reserved for late study nights, switching alternatively between our houses, taking turns providing snacks, background music, and entertainment for brief breaks. It was more fun than studying with Edward, who knew everything because he'd taken high school exams dozens of times and being an immortal vampire had allowed him to become a total know-it-all.

"What names?" I asked.

"I don't remember," Angie answered. She'd thrown a salmon-pink hoodie over her pajama shirt and used her fingers to comb her hair into a loose bun. "Like, Aro…Marcus…I don't know, Bella. But not names from around here. Although there might be a Mark Calvin. I think he was a few years ahead of us, in the same year as my brother."

Something I'd learned recently about Angie was that she had a half-brother six years older than us. He had graduated a year ago. He'd seen my truck once and offered to look at it if it ever gave me problems, but I had to politely refuse. Jacob was the only mechanic allowed to touch my beautiful rust bucket on wheels.

Oh, and her brother started working with my dad this month. He'd chosen to protect and serve Forks, the small, rainy town I now called home.

Forks hadn't always been my home. My parents split when I was young, too young to remember them being happy together once upon a time. I moved in with Dad before the start of the school year. My mom had remarried and we'd been fighting a lot. I'd wanted to get out of the way, give us some space to miss each other, and give both of us a fresh start. I got my fresh start. I made an effort. I shoved all my anti-social tendencies and timidity in a box in my head and made friends who didn't get tired of me after a month. I also met Edward, my vampire boyfriend who only drinks animal blood even though apparently my blood is the tastiest smelling blood in all of history. Edward's vampire family also thought my blood smelled delicious, but it was more than that to Edward. He'd almost killed me the first time we got close because it nearly impossible to resist. Thank God he did resist. Thinking about the transition from him wanting to devour me to being in love with me gave me a headache. All that mattered was that for four months no tragedies had occurred and he was beginning to act like an almost normal boyfriend. Things were good.

"Your phone started flashing two hours ago," Angie said. She frowned and raised an eyebrow at me. "It woke me up. Hence why I got up and brushed my teeth already."

Taking the hint, I checked my phone. As expected, it was Edward.

_Good morning, Bella._

It was a little funny that Edward was trying to be my alarm clock. Fool. I always turn off my phone to sleep.

It was annoying though, because Edward didn't sleep, and didn't care about when it was appropriate to text me. Vampires don't have to sleep. Edward frequently hung out in my room until late, long after I fell asleep (I couldn't play hostess all night, especially not on a school night) and he would let himself out sometime before I woke up. He was always ready with his car at the end of my driveway. He wanted every precious minute of my time, but I only allowed him so much, so he took everything I was willing to give. Saturday nights, for example, were forbidden to him, and that usually spread into Sunday mornings. He used to complain. Didn't I want to spend time with him? Don't normal teenage girls want to spend Saturdays with their boyfriends? Lately, I hadn't needed to remind him that normal teenage girls want to spend some Saturdays with their friends and that giving me some space was healthy for my poor mortal sanity.

_Esme has asked if you would wish to join us for dinner this evening. _

It wasn't the first time I'd stared at an invitation like this and wondered if Esme had invited me or if Edward had told Esme that he was going to invite me. Edward had proven to be creatively romantic, which I admitted I adored, but he liked creating excuses to keep me to himself and take me away from my human life.

_Do you need a ride home from Angela's?_

I quickly texted back one word: _No._

It took less than a minute for the inbox to flash again with his response.

_Ah, so my Sleeping Beauty awakens. Finally._

I rolled my eyes and tossed my phone onto the sleeping bag. Angie shook her head at me. Edward wasn't her favourite person. I didn't blame her. I'd been scared of Edward once, and I'd confessed a lot of my concerns about my relationship with her—without revealing Edward was a vampire—and she had strongly suggested that I tread carefully and not give him all of my heart until I was absolutely sure he wouldn't give into his darker side. Easy in theory, but harder in practice. I'd been through stuff with Edward. Serious stuff. Like when the vampire James, who had wanted to kill me, killed my mom instead. I'd thought I'd never speak to Edward again, but I'd forgiven him. It was a waste of energy to hate Edward and have my heartache whenever he was near me. I couldn't keep track of such opposing and strong emotions, so I settled for keeping my rich, immortal, prince of a boyfriend. He'd gotten better at resisting the urge to drink my blood and I was slowly training him to be less clingy, so it was working.

Dad didn't like Edward either. Whether it was because he was a cop or because he was my dad, he saw through the charm and gentlemanly manner that fooled everyone else. He saw the danger. Dad told me more than once he got a bad feeling whenever he saw Edward holding my hand and caught him kissing my cheek. I convinced Dad that it was his paternal instincts and that it was because I was his only daughter. Dad had no choice to agree. He didn't know there was a reason not to.

Angie and I went downstairs for breakfast. Her brother was on the couch playing a video game. I didn't recognize it, but it involved a coloured square and platforms that moved and obstacles to overcome. I watched occasionally while chewing Angie's homemade waffles—soft, fluffy, and so moist they practically melted in my mouth. Angie was a breakfast goddess. Angie's mom joined us at the kitchen table and read a few headlines from the newspaper. The wolf population was at an all time high. Apparently it was strange enough to warrant a specialist who had noticed a similar sudden rise elsewhere a few years ago.

Angie interrupted the wolf news to report a new text from Jess. Apparently Mike and Jess were over, again, and she was going to prom with a guy named Ian. Angie and I had been instructed to delete all photos of her and Mike and the Snowflake Dance and the Valentine's bowl-off (the teams all being couples, and, expectedly, Edward managed to take the dorkiness out of couples wearing matching shirt colours while bowling for the grand prize of nothing).

"That's the second time this month," I accused.

"Mike let slip he wasn't sick but purposely skipped the bake sale because he thought it would be boring," Angie grumbled. "It was boring."

"I remember." The sad part was that the bake sale was to raise money for new school uniforms, and Mike, being an athlete, had let his girlfriend do all the work. He couldn't bake, sure, but he could've showed up for moral support. Edward bought a bunch and he couldn't eat human food (not that anyone beside me knew that extra special detail).

"I went on a date with a guy named Ian once," Angie said.

"The Snowflake Dance." I had been trying to remember his name for a while, at last the mystery was solved and I could die peacefully with no regrets.

"Yeah," Angie said. "He was cute, but one-dimensional, you know?"

I nodded.

"He probably wanted a date because his friends all had dates and he'd be shamed if he was the only stag bro." Angie rolled her eyes.

I patted her shoulder. She smirked and shook her head at me. For once in my life I was the girl who already had a date to the dance or whatever occasion that called for a boyfriend. It felt fantastic to be on this end of the spectrum.

"I wish Eric would stop avoiding me," Angie said, her voice low, eyes watching her brother from the couch.

Her mom looked up from the newspaper. Her lips curled, but she lifted the paper again and moved from the table to the sink, to discard her dishes. She rinsed and arranged her plate and utensils in the dishwasher and remained somewhat out of hearing distance, to feign giving us a private moment. I stopped chewing and leaned in closer.

"When did you talk last?"

"When he tried to ask me out, tripped over the front steps of the school, and then excused himself unsuccessfully hiding his bruised ego and bruised…everywhere else," Angie recounted.

I hadn't witnessed the event, but Jess had, and she always laughed when she heard Angie tell it. Uncontrollably. It was her new favourite story.

"If he won't respond to texts, you have to walk up to him," I prescribed. "Ambush him at school, at lunch or something, so he doesn't have the excuse to hang up or have something better to do."

"I guess I have to," Angie said. "I'm not the kind of girl that likes to make the moves." She sighed.

It was so nice to have problems I could relate to and attempt to solve. Normal. That's what this was. _Normal_. It was a good counterbalance to the strange problems Alice tried to solve with my input. Not that she needed my input. The questions she asked me she answered herself as I opened my mouth. I never got a word in. She already knew what I would say. It saved time but it made my brain feel like it was running a marathon. Losing the marathon, but definitely still running.

I got dressed, packed up my notebooks and overnight bag, and then got in my truck. I was more than impressed that Edward had resisted showing up. He wasn't the possessive stalker I had once feared. He was patient and was even amused by the practice of pretending to be a normal human couple with human restrictions. Of course that didn't stop him from sometimes sending Alice to check in on me, as a cheat.

"Hiya!"

My hands jerked the wheel, but only half an inch, and Alice, being able to predict the future, wouldn't have let my unsteady hands divert me onto a dangerous path. She had slipped in sometime after I'd pulled out of the driveway. The window was down. Had she jumped in while the truck was moving? I was more worried about the damage her dramatic entrance might do to the truck, since she was damn near indestructible.

"Sleepyhead," she said.

"Humans need a certain amount of sleep," I reminded her.

She was wearing a glamorous spring outfit. Her jacket, a warm shade of light brown, had three-quarter length sleeves and was short, stopping at her waist. Her lacy off-white top was mostly sheer, tucked under a thick black belt with a green skirt with pink Hawaiian flowers dotted about the hem. Alice had been faking hair growth since January, and now her wig, made a real human hair (she claimed), was artfully wavy and hung over her shoulders by an inch.

"I know," Alice said. Her eyes widened. "It's just so damn fun to tease you!"

"Glad I could provide you with _fun_, Alice."

She giggled.

"Are you here because you want to be or because Edward had a mission for you?"

"I want to." She buckled her seatbelt. She frowned, swiped her fingers across the belt a few times, and then slumped. "Weird." She clicked the button and released it. Her whole posture rejuvenated. She often tried to conform to safety protocols to placate me, but she usually gave up quickly. Seatbelts, she often said, were like chains. It was good for humans, but it felt like a cage to her. No car crash would harm her, so why subject herself to imprisonment?

"I know graduation isn't for three weeks, but we're having a party," Alice explained. "A private party. Rosalie and Emmett are planning to get married again and have a honeymoon for a year, since there's nothing for them to do around here while the rest of us finish yet another last year of high school."

"How many times have they been married?"

"A few. Four. More. Not the point."

"How many times have you married Jasper?"

"Once in a church," she said. "Now it's a party with a cake, only for the show of it, but since you have human taste buds I thought you could make the cake and I could decorate it! We'll be a team!"

"Once in a church? So more than once somewhere else?"

"As you know, we've done this sort of thing a lot," she continued without pause, "so the little party isn't the exciting part. It's really a test run."

"Did you marry Jasper and take the last name Hale, or Jasper's real last name?"

"One of many test runs. Because you're a part of our family."

A laugh escaped. My eyes left the road maybe a moment too long to study her face, unsure if she was trying to be serious. It wasn't always clear with Alice.

She was stunned. How could I laugh? Of course I was part of her family. Don't be silly, Bella. But since when? Rosalie hated me. She'd told me to split the first chance I got. Not to mention the Cullens had a diet that was lethal to me should they ever go too long between hunting and get hungry enough that I would start looking like a nice sirloin steak with a side of yum.

"Someday, Bella," she said softly, her hand touching my shoulder, "we'll welcome you into our family. It's what Edward wants. It's what we all want."

"All?"

"Rosalie will come around."

"_All_?"

"You'll come around too."

I shook my head. "I like being human."

"How can you say you like being human when you're on your period?"

I frowned and tried not to think about how she knew that. Were my cramps obvious? Maybe wearing light coloured sweat-pants had been a bad idea. Had there been a spot? No. It was definitely because Alice's vampire nose could smell blood. I was going to be sick if she even so much as hinted that it made her hungry. I looked over to study her eyes. Light, almost gold. She'd fed recently.

"Wouldn't you rather get rid of all that discomfort?" She clasped her hands together, like pleading with me would work today when it hadn't the dozen other times we'd had this conversation. "Vampires don't get sick either. Lady vampires don't get bloated once a month. We don't ever gain weight. We look like our most beautiful self _forever_."

"I am comfortable with how I look," I said. It was true. Most of the time. Not today, but most of the time.

"Forget _comfortable._ Try tickled pink. You'll be gorgeous and Edward won't be able to keep his hands off you." She made a claw with her hand and purred. She wagged an eyebrow, laughed at my concerned expression, and lowered her feline claw. "And, even better, Bella, dear, it's okay if you two want to get frisky. Because he won't have to hold back, since once you're immortal you'll lose all that fragility that makes it so dangerous for you to do anything more than kiss!"

"I _like_ kissing."

"Life is not a Disney movie, Bella," Alice said with a growl in her voice. "There are better things to come after that kiss. Rosalie is always trying to convince me that her reason for remarrying Emmett over and over isn't to throw a party and buy a new pretty white dress—it's about the honeymoon. It's like they're in wedded bliss for the first time every time! If you want to get on Rosalie's good side, just wait until she comes back from her honeymoon. She's like a whole other person. A happy person. Tickled pink happy."

I sighed. My house was in view. Not that exiting the truck would end this conversation. Alice was determined.

"I'm not ready, Alice. For…that next step."

"Fine." She crossed her arms and slumped against the seat. "But you're missing out. And Edward isn't going to take the next step until your body is capable of withstanding sex with a vampire."

"_Okay_!" I parked the truck in the driveway. "That's enough of that." My face was hot. So what I was sixteen. So what other girls were fine losing their v-card at this age. I was not. Not not _not_. When I was ready, I would be ready, but I wasn't. I slammed the truck door—and regretted it instantly, since the old gal could only take so much abuse. I tenderly opened the door and took my bag from the seat. When I closed the door—this time with love and care—Alice was waiting beside me.

"I'm sorry for being pushy," Alice said, "but Edward is not a patient guy and you are a stubborn girl so I like to keep you two at peace. When you're at war, everyone suffers. Particularly Jasper, because Edward likes to use him to talk about you. And then I talk about you too. It makes Jasper feels used and a little jealous that no one comes to talk to him about him anymore."

"Poor Jasper." I shoved open the front door. "Dad, I'm home!" No answer. He'd gone to work. "Alice, maybe if you stop talking about _me_ so much, you could focus on making Jasper happier. In fact, stop talking about me and I'll be happier too."

Alice groaned. She couldn't help herself. I was her doll and she had to play.

I made Alice wait while I refreshed myself with a shower. She had infiltrated my closet and pulled open my drawers. We'd talked about this before. Yes my wardrobe was boring, especially compared to her runway idealism, but this was the wardrobe of a girl who hadn't accumulated millions of dollars by living for decades.

Alice sometimes forced new things into my closest. It was annoying only because I felt guilty excepting her charity. It made it easier when I remembered she took more pleasure out of dressing me up than I ever could, so really it was more of a favour to her than myself. The only remaining problem was that my style was casual at best. Her vision for me was dresses and hairstyles I was too lazy to work out for myself.

Today I allowed her to play. Any occasion at the Cullen house made me nervous. I'd been over almost a dozen times now, but that didn't change the meet-the-family combined with meet-the-vampires vibe. I wanted to be presentable, more presentable than my real self. The Cullens, even if they weren't vampires, emanated class and regality from every angle. I needed to up my game to feel comfortable around them.

Alice allowed me light blue jeans and a sleeveless fuchsia top with an eyelet floral design and a high collar. She insisted on curling my hair and arranging it in a high ponytail. She pulled a couple strands loose in front and then wound a pink ribbon around to disguise the hair-tie.

According to Alice, we had a few things to discuss before the dinner party, so she pulled out a dessert book and we flipped through until I found something I was capable of making and Alice was equally thrilled to decorate. Then we took my truck to the grocery store and picked up the ingredients. The cake wouldn't be needed until after exams, but Alice was convinced we needed a practice run.

The result was that our creation was my lunch. A rather sugary lunch, but, hey, I had no complaints. It was a success. Maybe Rosalie would glare at me less if I provided her grad celebration with cake. Doubtful.

* * *

The Cullens Victorian-inspired home was as much a living space as it was a work of art. The clean white outside, the sun-warmed porch, the wide windows—the mansion was a dream, welcoming and magnificent. Rosalie stood on the terrace on the second floor, one hand on her hip, glaring down at me. Her glare had softened over the months. She must have come to accept that Edward was going to keep me. Now she looked more annoyed and little less like she was planning new ways to murder me.

Edward opened my door the second I had parked my truck beside the Cullen's garage. Impatient. He made up for it with his good looks. Even though it was windy, his dark tousled hair didn't fall out of place. The sun shone making his place skin warm and picked out shades of red in his hair. His eyes were golden today. Since we were apart on Saturdays, he started using Saturday as hunting day.

"Pretty in pink," he teased. He offered his hand and closed the door after me. He kissed my forehead. He was really the perfect height for that. He pulled me into a hug, and my head could fit perfectly cradled on his shoulder.

Edward held my hand as we walked up the porch steps. Carlisle sat on a white wicker chair with a letter in hand. He smiled and placed the letter down on the matching wicker table and set a leather-bound journal over the letter to keep the wind from carrying it away.

"Bella," Carlisle said. "You look well today."

"Thanks. I feel well."

"I am glad to hear it." Carlisle lifted his leg to cross the other and let his arms fall on the arms of the chair. His usual easy manner was absent. Carlisle always had a gentlemanly power, and in the beginning he'd been intimidating, but ever since he saved my human life those many months ago I'd found it easy to be around him. But now that I knew him better I knew something was upsetting him. His eyes rested on the leather-bound book, on the letter held beneath it. Even my human eyes could see him debating the contents of the letter in his head.

Alice hopped onto the banister across from Carlisle. She wasn't worried. Whatever concerned Carlisle, Alice had probably see the possible outcomes and decided the best fate to follow. Seeing her so at ease with something that was clearly disturbing to Carlisle shoved an ice shard in my heart. I'd forgiven Alice, but I hadn't forgotten. Alice had seen multiple possible futures for what would happen after James kidnapped my mom. She'd told me she could've saved my mom's life, but the truth was even though she could she decided that the best future meant my mom had to die. I didn't envy Alice. The choices she made about the future she saw had to be definite and sure. She had to make the choice that was best for everyone, and that didn't always mean it was the safest choice, or the happiest in that moment. It would be a long time before I could blindly accept her advice the way her family did.

"If only the days could go on exactly like this." Carlisle had moved from the porch and stood in the sun, his hands in his pockets, eyes closed and head tilted back. "The simplest life is the happiest."

"I'm happy," Alice countered. "Definitely not simple, but happy."

Carlisle chuckled. "I suppose that's true." He opened his eyes. "We must always be grateful for the happiness life sends our way. Even if it is complicated. I wouldn't have met my family if it weren't for complicated circumstances." His eyes fell over the tree of us. Exactly as Alice had said, without my knowing, the Cullens had begun accepting me as part of their family.

* * *

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: Review/comment, please! I love it when you do!**

**As you know, Edward isn't a huge part of _New Moon_ (if you haven't watched the movie or read the book, he leaves), so he's not a huge part of this story. He's definitely involved, but this fanfic will mostly feature Bella, Jacob, Carlisle, and Alice (because I can't help but love Alice and put her in everything). Enjoy.**


	3. Chapter 2: Stitches

**_Chapter 2: Stitches_**

CARLISLE WAS THE ONLY ONE WHO STAYED CALM. Or maybe that was my perception of him. His age gave the illusion of calm. No one was screaming or running around, but I could see in their faces that scenarios were screaming and running in their heads. Edward's expression was the worst, the most worried—but the lack of a mirror in the parlor made it difficult to judge my own expression.

Edward, Carlisle, and I had engaged in some small talk to avoid the letter that had obviously caused Carlisle's worry. It wasn't until after Esme offered me a slice of her peach cobbler (and the Cullens all watched me eat, as if watching me might help them remember what flavours existed for the human tongue) that we discussed the letter. Edward had his arm around me. Alice took her place beside Jasper, who, as expected, stayed the furthest distance away from me while remaining in the same room. High school halls were torture for him, but it was better than being in the same room with one human. It was too easy for him to focus his senses on my heartbeat.

"After we watched the recording James made," Esme said, her voice careful and even, "we knew there was more to James' story than we initially thought."

I shivered. I was nauseous. James had recorded my mother's murder. James was another reason for me to remain human; James was a vampire; James had no humanity. There was more to becoming a vampire than fangs and thirst. Vampirism heightened the strongest parts of a person. For Rosalie, who had been beautiful as a human, was now incomparable. Esme had lost her child but clung to her mothering instinct, and now she exuded motherly warmth and welcoming like light from the sun. Edward admitted he'd been stubborn (aka controlling) as a human and that trait had strengthened too. Whoever James had been as a human, becoming a vampire made the darkest parts of him stronger. I was afraid of that happening to me.

"James mentioned the Volturri."

"The Volturri," I echoed. What had Edward told me about them? A group of three very old vampires that made some rules, recruited some rule enforcers, and now they're the most powerful vampires in the world.

"We tried to track Victoria when we realized there was more to learn," Esme continued. "But whatever she might have known…"

"She left the country," Emmett explained grouchily. "She probably left the continent. Jasper and I searched. Nothing. Not a whiff of her."

"Which is good," Rosalie said firmly. Her body was stone, pronouncing her inhuman features, like how little she moved, like a wild cat waiting in a shadow. "James was dangerous. It's better that Victoria give up and leave us alone."

"We did find out some things," Esme said, but she didn't sound happy. Her expression was hard. Her hair was combed back, achieving a perfect fishtail braid. Her black pencil skirt folded over her thighs giving them both shape and structure. Esme's attire was always professional and elegant. "James coming here was no coincidence."

I inhaled sharply. "What?"

"He was sent here."

"By who? The Volturri?"

"I have friends in the old world," Carlisle said. His expression was plain. "Some are willing to provide me with warnings, and any information that might protect me and my family. More than ever I am thankful that I made friends during my travelling years, many who owe me favours."

Carlisle took Esme's hand. Her face was tight. She needed his support. Edward took my hand too, and I noticed that I had been quivering. From rage at James. And from fear about why the Volturri had sent James.

"The Volturri have many scouts," Carlisle explained. "Usually pairs. These pairs investigate rumours, if any rules have been broken, or if any suspicious behaviour is suspected. James and Laurent were one such pair. My theory is that, perhaps, some nomadic vampires reported that a large coven had settled in Forks, which is forbidden. James and Laurent might have been sent to see if the rumour was true and take action against us."

My eyes widened. Edward had mentioned that vampires were nomadic because if humans started dying or getting their blood drained by the dozens, the trend would be noticed, and retaining secrecy was the number one rule the Volturi enforced. I thought the rule was about not causing suspicion—I didn't know that it was forbidden to have a large coven.

"My old friendship with Aro made our family an exception," Carlisle added. "Since we do nothing to arouse suspicion of what we are and leave before revealing how unchanging we are, we break no rules by existing as we are. However, it would seem the Volturri, more than ever, have decided that enforcing the rules absolutely is the only way to protect us all. The exceptions they might have made before no longer apply."

"You're saying that the Volturri are coming down hard on rule breakers," I summarized.

Carlisle nodded.

"Aro," I said, "he's one of the Volturri?"

"He _is_ the Volturri," Edward said coolly.

"Aro and his two brothers, and their wives, are the head of the Volturri," Carlisle answered. "Aro, however, is considered by many to be the true leader. When I knew him he was the most forceful. His brothers debated with him, but never disagreed with his decisions. The final say was always the word of Aro."

Aro. How strange that his name had been in my dream. Alice was the psychic one, not me—but maybe my subconscious knew more than I was aware of. Maybe my dreams had warned me something big was coming.

"I received a letter from a loyal friend within the Volturri." Carlisle held up the same letter he'd had with him on the porch. "She confirms that the Volturri have sent out more scouts and lately have tuned their ears to listen to even the least threatening rumours."

"Laurent joined the Denali clan." Emmett frowned, his forehead wrinkled. "When he left us he said he wanted to try their lifestyle, but once he got to know them he confessed everything. He told them that he was meant to investigate them for the Volturri but decided to join them instead."

"The Volturri won't be happy about that," Edward said.

"Hell, they'll be pissed." Emmett's spoke with a growl. But he smiled too, as if making the Volturri mad was an entertaining thought. "I know I'd be."

Carlisle's expression remained unchanged. "Tanya is convinced that Laurent made peace with the Volturri. The Denali clan is safe."

"And us?" Rosalie asked. "We killed James. The Volturri loves anyone with a gift, and James was gifted. They won't let us off as easily."

"That is why we have decided to leave Forks," Esme said. She exhaled long and slow. Her sad eyes met mine. "If we stayed we'd only risk drawing attention to ourselves."

It was a jaw-dropping moment. My jaw didn't drop, but I did gape. Leave Forks. Edward squeezed my hand. I couldn't look at him.

"You're leaving Forks?"

"Likely," Carlisle confirmed. "I am waiting on some details from my friend, the same one who wrote me this letter. When we leave will depend on what else she tells me. I need to be sure that leaving here will be enough to cease the Volturri's interest in our family."

"When would you leave?"

"Next June," Alice squeaked. Her eyes loomed, two orbs focusing all attention of me like spotlights monitoring a coast for signs of passing ships. I felt watched, and a little lost at sea.

June. That was a year away.

"Being immortal, the Volturri tend to move slowly. They're very patient." Edward winked at me. He was pretending not to worry. But a year wasn't much time to an immortal.

"Rosalie and Emmett already have plans to leave in three weeks," Edward added to reassure me. "Any scout of the Volturri that finds us after that won't have much to complain about if there are only five of us here."

"Makes sense," I agreed. If covens were typically two to four vampires, one more couldn't be considered much of an offense.

"It does worry me about our future," Carlisle admitted, "especially regarding what we now ask of you."

I sat up. Alice mouthed words at me, but I couldn't focus on her. Rosalie's expression had soured again. Emmett rubbed her shoulders, like that would help.

"Our departure brings attention to the decision you must make," Carlisle said. "We have discussed this, all of us, and we would welcome you if you chose to leave with us."

My whole body became an ice cube. I wriggled my hand free from Edward's. I stood. I never thought Carlisle would ask me that. He'd done what I'd asked when I'd been devastated and sobbing in that ballet studio with James' venom spreading inside. He'd saved me. He'd kept me human. Now he'd asked if I wanted to become a vampire.

"It is a lot to think over," Esme whispered. "We don't need your answer today. We only wished for you to know you are welcome and, no matter what your decision is, we consider you a part of our family."

I nodded. "Thank you."

Esme smiled, but there was more worry than reassurance in her eyes.

"Excuse me." Without another word, I walked from the room, closed the front door behind me, got in my truck, and drove home.

* * *

Exams. It was a routine. The right answer was in the textbooks I read and re-read. There was no reason to consider other answers or second-guess myself. The answers were all there.

Edward didn't bring up the choice Carlisle had given me. He drove me from my house to the exams. He wished me luck, even though he said that I was smart enough not to need luck. Smart, maybe. But I wasn't wise. I didn't have an answer to his question.

It was a relief to be stuck in a desk with an exam paper and a reliable number two pencil in hand. Although only half my study time had been used to study. When I sat on my bed, reading the same line over and over, Edward lying next to me, my mind repeated the promise I made to Rosalie. If Edward ever left me, I had to let him go. Was this what she had meant? If the day came that Edward and the Cullens had to leave Forks, she had wanted me to promise to stay behind?

Then there was the other thing to consider. If I ignored the promise I'd made to Rosalie that only made room for my worries about forfeiting my humanity. Being human was what I wanted. Going with the Cullens… It's not like I could travel with them as a _human_. It was dangerous for me and risky for them. Edward wanted me to be a vampire with him. Alice wanted me as her new sister. Carlisle and Esme and Emmett treated me like we'd known each other my whole life. Jasper…probably found my human state an irksome temptation. Rosalie was the only member of the coven who would be happier if I choose to stay in Forks.

Jess organized a party to celebrate the end of exams. Next year we'd have a grad party. Jess was already trying to convince Angie and I that we needed to join the committee behind all the grad festivities for our graduating year. Lauren was in. That gave me good reason to _not_ want to join. Lauren hated me. She never said a good word about me—and often said more than a few bad ones—and she never spoke directly to me. Why Jess was friends with her I could never understand. They had the same classes, they'd been in the same swimming lessons, and they're mothers were friends since high school. It practically made them sisters. I had to tolerate Lauren being around because I was Jess' friend. (Jess had her undesirable traits too, and she was sometimes selfish, but she was never cruel.)

Jess' post-exams party involved a few rounds of Jenga, some underage drinking, and visiting a playground after dark, acting like children. Angie and I competed for height on the swings. I won. Then we went back to Jess' and played a marathon of _Game of Thrones_ episodes. I'd never seen a single episode before that night, and boy was I shocked. It was also unexpectedly fantastic.

The shock that came next was bigger and not at all fantastic.

As planned, Alice and I baked a chocolate cake, placed a large thin layer of wafer cookie on top to shape it into a graduation cap, and then Alice used yellow icing to make the graduation-cap-cake. I wasn't sure what to make the tassel out of, but I bought a pack of rainbow licorice and stuck a yellow one on and Alice finished it off with more yellow icing. It was no _Cake Boss_ creation, but it was the best thing I'd ever made with cake.

Alice set up a table with the cake, cards from teachers and classmates that Rosalie and Emmett knew, and then I helped her haul photo albums into the parlor. Some of them were old, with black and white photos—faded, less black and white and more brownish-yellow. It was a tradition to look back at photos during events like graduation. Carlisle had started the tradition as a way to remind their family to be grateful for all that their lives had given them.

Rosalie wore an above-the-knees black dress with one bare sleeve and one shouldered. She wore a necklace with a large pendant—a sea green stone swirling with splashes of navy blue and fleck of yellow surrounded by a gold frame that gave the pendant an oval shape. Her long nails were painted the same sea green as the stone. The ends of her golden hair were curled in; the front smoothly folded up and pinned back on one side. It was a hairstyle influenced by the 50s. Of course she'd lived through that era so it was no surprise that she would no how to pull off the modern version of that look.

Emmett, though it was his graduation, though Rosalie had surely told him otherwise, had decided to wear jeans. He wore a nice shirt, the sleeves rolled up, and it had recently been ironed. Rosalie hadn't managed to make him wear dress pants, but at least she got the top. Emmett's hair had also been combed and slicked back. Rosalie was trying to make her man match. She suited it more easily than Emmett did.

Alice had put me in blue again—as she was convinced that it pleased Edward—and she wore a yellow dress with eyelet lace. Esme too had dressed up. She wore a long navy blue skirt with a white top, the high neckline sheer lacework with solid white starting inches below her collarbone. Her hair was pulled in a bun and held in place with black chopsticks—a hairstyle I'd never managed to recreate on my own (the chopsticks always slipped out). Carlisle wore the same dress pants he'd worn to the ceremony, but he'd loosened a few of the buttons of his shirt to relax the look. Edward and Jasper, having experienced their siblings graduate many times and there only concern about fashion came from not making enemies of the ladies in their family, wore everyday clothing. It irked me. I'd been forced to dress up. Why hadn't Alice made Jasper wear a dress shirt? Alice had made me wear heels! Hells too high for me. I felt unstable. I'd wobbled a few times. I was practically the same height as Edward now! Plus the straps were cutting off my circulation, which wasn't right at all.

Alice announced Rosalie and Emmett's entrance with a loud, "TADA!"

Rosalie couldn't help herself. Her lips curved. She raised a hand to her chest and examined the cake from a few angles. "This is…actually not bad." She laughed.

"You can thank Bella and me," Alice cheered. She threw her arms around her sister and then her brother. "Happy grad again!"

"Thank you, Alice." Rosalie's smile broadened. Her eyes found me and she rolled her eyes, but she didn't lose her smile. "Thank you, Bella."

I don't know who was more surprised, Edward or myself. "You're welcome," I said stiffly. "Congratulations. On graduating."

"It's not like we haven't done it before," Emmett said with a chuckle. He clapped my back with a slow cautiousness—which only slightly bruised.

"But it's the first time I've congratulated you," I noted.

Emmett blinked. Then he clapped his hands together and laughed for a moment. Emmett was probably the least like a vampire in the whole bunch. He laughed easily, he laughed deeply, and he didn't care about being quiet or careful. He was probably the warmest, jolliest vampire on the whole planet. I was a little sad that he was leaving. At least he was taking Rosalie with him.

"Should we…try it?" Esme eyed the cap-cake nervously.

"No way," Alice said. She shivered and stuck out her tongue. "We'd just have to throw it up later. No way are we doing that to my magnificent creation! Oh and Bella's."

"Seems like a waste of perfectly fine cake," Rosalie said.

"That's why Bella is here," Alice said. She bounced up beside me, pushed her hands against my back, and scooted me toward the kitchen. She looped her arm with mine and stopped us by the sink.

"Success," Alice said. "Our cake is a hit." She faced her palm toward me. I clapped her hand in celebration.

"I'm impressed it's still standing," I admitted. "Most of my baking tends to be…lopsided."

"That's what I'm here for. To straighten you out."

"Why are we in the kitchen, Alice?"

"To get a knife to cut the cake."

I placed a hand on her shoulder. "Yes. This is your kitchen. I don't know where you keep anything."

She mimed smacking her forehead. "Duh!" She opened a drawer. "Here." She held open the drawer. Her expression froze in place and she watched me. "You're the newest member, so I think it's only fair you do the honours."

I frowned. Alice knew how I felt. She knew I'd avoided answering. Alice was too stubborn to surrender.

"Alice."

"So have you thought about it?"

"You know I have."

"But you don't know."

"No, I don't know." I cast a weary look at the doorway. Not that it mattered if they were in the room or not. They were definitely listening. "We can talk about this later."

"Sure." Alice stayed with her hand on the drawer. She hadn't so much as blinked. Something was strange.

"Let's hope it tastes half as good as it—"

A prick on the edge of my fingertip made me jerk my hand out of the drawer. The line across my finger reddened. Alice turned on the tap and I ran my finger under the water. The blood that washed out coloured the sink's drain for a second. I saw the enemy in the drawer—a small knife in the back pointed in the wrong direction with a shadow of red on the point.

Before it could sink in what had happened, two things happened in the blink of an eye. Jasper grabbed my wrist. His tall frame cast a shadow over me. His mouth opened, teeth ready to bite. A few snapping sounds made my stomach tighten. Edward had broken Jasper's fingers to get his hand off me. Alice stood in front of Jasper, one hand on his chest, speaking softly and quickly. Carlisle had him by one arm and Emmett had the other. Jasper's chest rose and fell. His breathing was heavy and quick, but slowing. Alice touched his cheek and he met her eyes. He searched her face, his expression wavering between guilt and rage—that small amount of blood had made him remember all the thirst he had been resisting for years.

"Bella." Edward turned from Jasper.

"I'm okay," was my automatic response. I wasn't okay. My legs were shaky and my wrist ached. Touching the skin hurt. Already bruises shaped like Jasper's fingers had formed. They were light now, but they would darken. I could see my arm so I knew it wasn't true, but it felt like my arm had been crushed, like someone had taken a mallet banged all around my wrist. I could practically feel the blood pooling under my skin.

It wasn't something I normally thought about—at least I never used to—but that's what new bruises were. Blood. Rushing to repair the injury. A mouthwatering injury. A bruise filled with Edward's most delicious temptation.

Like lightning striking across a storm-darkened sky, Edward leapt. One second he'd been beside Jasper in the doorway, helping to restrain him, and the next second I saw him in front of me. He didn't seem to recognize me. I hardly recognized him. But I'd seen this side of Edward before. No words could bar him from what he wanted. He couldn't see me. He saw the veins beneath my skin growing darker in colour the deeper he stared. He could hear my blood pulsing inside me. He was a vampire now. No part of him was mine. It only took two seconds, too fast for me think what I should do—run, duck, beg, cry, nothing—but Edward's teeth touched my neck. I felt my skin split. I felt the sting.

I was waiting for worse. I thought for sure that this was the moment that pain would come. Vampires didn't make two neat little holes like in the movies. No, a hungry vampire was like any animal, and I expected my neck to be gashed apart. That didn't happen. Terror had shut my eyes, but I opened my eyes to see what had delayed my gory demise.

Carlisle, of course. Alice and Rosalie had a solid grip on Jasper and were taking him into the other room. Emmet was shadowing them, making sure Jasper didn't make a run for it. But Carlisle had wrestled Edward to the ground. Esme now stood in front of me, her arms out, ready to grab Edward if he slipped out of her husband's hold. Edward didn't fight. Carlisle's lips moved, but he spoke too low for me to hear. Edward seemed more wounded than I was. He was horrified.

Esme's soft, cold fingers brushed over my neck. "It's shallow. A scratch," she whispered calmly. "Bella, honey, do you feel any burning or stinging?"

I shook my head once. It wasn't like when James had bit my palm. I curled my fingers. I could remember that burn. It was cold fire, like frostbite. Edward had, at the very least, been stopped before he could make his desire come true. He hadn't tasted my blood and his venom hadn't reached me. I would be human another day. Human and fragile.

Carlisle released Edward. They stood a few feet away. Only Esme stayed close. Edward tried to speak twice, but he only said my name and nothing else. I knew what he wanted to say, but we both knew an apology wasn't going to make me forget how much he had scared me.

Rosalie returned to assure us that Jasper had calmed down, but Alice wanted to keep him at a safe distance for now.

"This is why Bella isn't safe with us," Rosalie said angrily.

"Rosalie," Esme said, her tone warning.

She ignored her adopted mother and took a step toward Edward. "She isn't safe because of you, Edward."

Edward's eyes narrowed as he looked at his sister. He shook his head and closed his eyes.

"It isn't fair," Rosalie continued, "to _any_ of us. But especially her." She nodded her head toward me. "You've done _enough_ to her."

"We can have a shouting match about this later," Edward said quietly. "I think Bella should go home."

"She _should_ go home," Rosalie agreed. "Go and never come back. She shouldn't come with us. She's human. She deserves to _stay_ human and live a life uncomplicated by us!"

"Enough, Rosalie," Edward shouted. He turned on her and stood inches from her. It was as if the years of no sleep finally showed. His voice was rough. His eyes had narrowed, heavy from tiredness.

Esme's hand rose to her mouth. Vampires didn't cry, but I'd learned to recognize the expressions that matched what they couldn't show. Edward was exhausted, ruined from his mistakes. Esme cried because her family was fighting and it hurt her that she couldn't stop it. Carlisle sighed and set his hands on his hips, bowing his head. My family wasn't the only victim of my connection with Edward. The Cullens were at odds, standing on opposing sides, deciding how best to deal with me. If Edward hadn't wanted me so much, I wondered how many more would side easily with Rosalie—would they have decided to kill me or maybe move far away if Alice had warned them I'd be showing up that fateful day?

Alice crossed the room in a second and took my hand. "I'll take Bella home," she said.

"Thank you, Alice," Carlisle said.

She nodded once and guided me around Edward, using her body as a shield between us. Whether Edward was trying to find the right words still, I didn't know. I couldn't look at him now.

Neither of us spoke until Alice had driven through the trees and out of sight of the Cullens' home. It was afternoon and the sun had darkened with orange. Would Rosalie and Emmett go to the grad dance like nothing had happened? Or would they leave for their trip early to put a lot of distance between us?

I wiped tears from my cheeks and leaned my head against the window. "Did you know?" I asked her.

"Yes." Her voice was quiet and shaky. "I saw that Jasper might go for you, but he needs practice. If it had been only him…I know that's not a good excuse, but the truth is being with us is always going to be dangerous—more so when you're human, but probably big things will happen when you're a vampire too. I wanted you to have a chance to look at your choices realistically."

"Alice."

Her hands curled tensely around the wheel. Her voice trembled. "I know."

I closed my eyes and leaned my head back against the headrest. "You said _when_ I'm a vampire."

Her fingers loosened. "This was the only way you'd know."

The moon was almost invisible, barely a wisp of silver in the daylight, but somewhere in the forest I heard a wolf howl.

* * *

**Chapter Update: Changed some things. I think it is an improvement. Thanks again for reading (and, perhaps, also reviewing?)!**


	4. Chapter 3: The End

**_Chapter 2: The End_**

* * *

I FELT ABSOLUTELY HIDEOUS IN THE MORNING. Metaphorically. Maybe a little literally. I had tossed around all night scarcely sleeping for a couple hours at a time. No brush could save my hair. In the shower—picking apart shampooed tangles in my hair—water like scalding rain finally freed me from my thoughts. I hadn't been able to stop my mind all night. It was a relief to have a blank mind. Hair dripping, I wrapped a towel around my body and stood in front of the mirror.

Purple bags under my eyes. Puffy from crying. The shower had helped my mental state but my physical state… Thank God school was out for the summer because no way could Jessica resist making a big deal out of why I looked like hell. Angie would be worried too. And Dad. If there were any good luck left he'd be at work already and I wouldn't have to explain. Maybe I could tell him I was on my period. He might buy that.

I had no plans for the day. Edward appeared whenever I didn't have plans. But maybe today he'd figure out I needed a day alone. I dressed in old faded shorts and a baggy t-shirt. I don't know why I had bothered to wash my hair. I tied it up lazily, a misshapen bun that held together through sheer force of will.

Dad had gone to work. At least I had one miracle today. My stomach gurgled. My exhaustion had resulted in intense hunger. I didn't feel like creating a masterpiece breakfast. In fact, I didn't feel like even leaving my room, but it was a hot day, Dad had never invested in air-conditioning, and my room could be a sauna by noon. It was small and stuffy. So I grabbed a jar of peanut butter, a spoon, and my laptop. I emptied half the jar. God. How would being a pig solve anything? It relieved the ache in my head temporarily, but it came back when I reluctantly put the peanut butter back in the cupboard.

The internet, as I had hoped, had a few hidden gems on reddit and I think I almost laughed out loud a few times. Almost. My mind wouldn't shut up; it refused to let me enjoy a quiet day. Something big had happened. Something big was coming. I didn't want to face it. I needed to recharge. But not even gags and memes were relaxing me.

My phone had a few random texts. Angie asked about some movie coming out soon. I texted back _Sure_ without really reading it. Jake apparently had looked at the local forecast and recommended that I meet him at La Push beach any day this week. I'd answer that one later. First I'd have to survive whatever happened with Edward before I made beach plans.

It was afternoon before I knew it. I felt like patting myself on the back. I'd made it so far. I felt better. Really. The exhaustion was there, and it showed on my face, but I felt like I could get off the couch.

I put on my big girl pants—metaphorically, but I also put on jean shorts and changed into a t-shirt fit for public consumption. Phone in hand, I held my breath and dialed Edward's number.

He answered after the first ring. He didn't speak for a moment. "Bella."

I was so nervous. I didn't know why, but I almost hung up. "Hi. We should talk. In person."

"Yes," he said, his voice low. "I suppose we should."

It was probably my turn to speak, but I didn't know what to say next. Edward didn't say anything either. I took a breath; exhaled, thought about saying something, thought about making a joke about the awkward silence, but in the end nothing was said. I'd been brave enough to call him, so why couldn't I finish one silly conversation? And he was the man, why couldn't he say something? Man up. The words 'we should talk' made every word more important than the last. There was a lot weighing on what was said next.

"Today?" Edward asked.

If only it could be put off another day—but this had to end.

"Yeah."

He sighed. "I'll be there soon."

"Okay. Goodbye." Saying that word made my stomach queasy. I hung up. I went to the bathroom; let my bun loose, and combed my fingers through. Good enough.

This summer was going to be difficult. Despite the warmth, a chill ran through me.

I couldn't wait inside and pace the living room. I waited outside, sitting on the front step, watching the road. When Edward said soon, he meant it. He had probably gotten in his car the second I'd said hi. He parked on the road. I walked down the driveway faster than I'd intended. My nervousness was making me hurried. For once, Edward didn't open the door for me. I got in on my own.

We didn't say much in that first half hour. I said hi again. He nodded. Minutes passed. I caught Edward staring at my wrist, which I had done the courtesy of covering with loose bracelets, but he saw through the cold metal bands. He saw the bruises shaped like fingers. I crossed my arms, wanting to hide it, but it hurt my arm, so I lay my hands flat on my lap. Edward asked how my neck was. Fine. It was fine. A car drove by slow and we both watched it go. It hurt the closer we got.

"Bella, you were hurt again," Edward said. "Because of me. Again."

I couldn't disagree. It had taken a lot of resolve to talk to him again after what James had done. I'd thought about trying to stay away from Edward for good, but I'd known then it was useless. Edward hadn't been willing to end it then. He still saw a future for us then.

"Being with me is dangerous," he continued. "Being away from you…I don't want that, but I can't keep hurting you. I don't want to see you hurt. And you _will_ be hurt if you stay with me. You're human. You're…fragile."

I nodded. My aching arm was strong evidence. "I'm human. Definitely human. And I _want_ to be human."

Edward pinched the bridge of his nose.

"I'm not going to reconsider," I said. "I've decided. I'm staying human."

"You can't come with us if you stay human," Edward said sharply.

I took his hand from his face and held it. "I can't come with you."

Edward's shoulders tightened and his eyebrows pressed together. His mouth opened, his eyes pleading. His hand tightened around mine.

"I'm not going with you," I said.

His mouth closed. His lips pressed into a firm line.

"I wish I could stay with you," he whispered. He leaned across the cab, one hand on my cheek, stroking down until he found the spot on my neck where his teeth had touched. He kissed me, softly once. His kissed my cheek. He kissed my forehead. He leaned back and brought my hand to his mouth. He kissed the back of my hand.

"I'm leaving," he said, his voice shaking. "Tonight."

My fingers tightened around his. I knew this would happen. Knowing didn't make it hurt less.

"I won't come back," he promised. He touched my hair, waving it through his fingers. "I want you to promise me that you'll be safe. Don't do anything reckless. I want to you be happy and live a long life."

"I think the chances of me being safe are higher without vampires," I teased with a tense smile.

He nodded. "I think so too."

He moved in the blink of an eye and kissed me again, deeply this time. Until I was breathless. Until my heart raced. Until my legs wobbled. Until I didn't think I could get out of his car.

"I'll never stop thinking of you," he promised.

"I won't forget you," I said grinning even with watery eyes.

He bowed his head. "I hope that you will. In time." He raised his head. "Forget every bad thing I let happen to you." He released my hand. "Please be happy, Bella."

My lips quivered and I think I let out a sob. I didn't want him to hear it, so I turned and opened the door. But he heard it. I know he did. When I looked back he had faced forward, hands clenched tight around the wheel with a hard expression. I saw pain in his eyes.

"Goodbye, Bella," he said.

"Edward." I tried to say goodbye, but the word didn't want to come. I closed the door and ran to my house, shutting the door. I leaned against it, closed my eyes, and tried to catch my breath.

* * *

**Author's Note: Thank you for reading and please post a review if you can!**

**I know this chapter is much shorter than the others, but I hope you feel it is appropriately so.**


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